


Already Seen

by kfaem



Category: DreamSMP, Technoblade - Fandom, Wilbur Soot - Fandom, jschlatt - Fandom, philza - Fandom, tommyinnit - Fandom, tubbo - Fandom
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-18
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-15 02:47:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 17,854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28806072
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kfaem/pseuds/kfaem
Summary: Wilbur craddled her face in his hands as he smiled delicately, "You are where you're supposed to be, here, with your family."What good was she for their small nation? An anarchist with a strong moral backbone had no place building what she despised most, yet there she was, hammer in hand as she helped bring up a new building. There she was, sneaking off to give more intel to her brother. There she was, assisting in the destruction of the same nation she helped build.So really, what good was she for their small nation?
Relationships: Jschlatt and Tubbo (Familial), Mild Dream x Original Character, No Romantic Relationship(s), SBI - Relationship, Sleepy Bois Inc. - Relationship
Kudos: 3





	1. And it Begins

**Author's Note:**

> Please consider leaving Kudos/Comments/or simply bookmarking to keep up with chapters!  
> I will be posting more side stories on my tumblr account: emwastakenw so please check it out if interested!

_"Independence or death!"_ The rebellion leader declared, cheers from his followers sounded from behind him. "If we get no revolution, then we want nothing. We would rather die, then give into you and join your land!"

Mina tugged at her gloves, watching on in fascination. "They're going to get themselves killed."

Their conversation ended soon after, Dream and his crew passing by with far-off facial expressions. "Well, who knew you'd have to deal with rebels so soon into your rule?" The man turned in her direction, a slight smile forming.

"Mina, you don't usually turn up around these parts," He stepped forward, extending out his hand. "What brings you here?"

She shook his hand, "I was passing by when I heard a couple of old ladies say a group of kids were causing trouble by the abandoned camp ground, you know me, I always have to check out a situation like this."

"I see," Suddenly, his green eyes lit up as he got an idea, "I have a job offer for you." Her eyebrow rose.

"Oh?"

-

With a frown, Mina exited the building, continuing down the path to the place the rebels named _"L'Manberg"._ Could she do the job? Wasn't it unethical? Most of the "citizens" are children.

She stood outside of the obsidian walls, contemplating her next move. "Dream is right, they're trying to create a whole new government but..he is also.." She sighed heavily and sat down against the wall.

"Oh, you're a woman." Shocked by the sudden voice, Mina reacted by withdrawing her sword. "Hey hey hey, what the fuck! What's with the sword?" Realizing it was the youngest of the bunch, she sheathed the weapon and nodded her head in apology.

"Your name is Tommy." His eyes widened and he stuttered out a reply.

"Yeah, uh, who the hell are you? What are you doing outside our walls?"

"There's no need for hostility, Tommy." Wilbur gave her a once over before a smile formed, "My name is Wilbur Soot, the current leader of L'Manberg, you are?"

_He doesn't remember me?_ "My name is Mina, I...don't exactly have a notable title to give you."

"Mina? What a beautiful name," He offered his hand to her, "listen, it's getting dark and you must not have a place to stay, would you like to stay here for the night?" Tommy glared at him, clearly unenthusiastic about welcoming a woman- a woman who pulled a sword at him- into the safety of his country.

"I-I believe I can't, though I do most definitely appreciate the offer-"

Wilbur held up his glove-covered finger, cutting Mina off mid sentence. "The sun has already set, you won't make it before morning." Looking around, she realized that he was correct. Any second now the monsters would appear and she was severely undersupplied, she would die on her journey.

-

The hut was small and gray with black stained windows and reinforced doors blocking entry. She realized how much she had underestimated these few kids, they clearly knew what they were doing.

Wilbur pushed open the door leading to the back, showing a small space with numerous brewing stands and a simple glow stone lantern imbedded in the roof. "Well, what do you think?" He turned around with a simple grin on his face.

"It's more than what I was expected, honestly." She replied, running her fingertips over the stone counters. "You people clearly know what you're doing to have so much stuff..especially the stands, those cost a couple thousand in the black market."

He nodded his head slowly, "You yourself appear to know a lot," With his back turned to her, he began brewing a simple tea for her, "my sister was the same way, so knowledgeable for her age." Mina stared at him with wide eyes.

"-She's passed away from what I've heard, she would've liked you." He finished stirring the liquid in the cup, "You look a lot like her too." _Is this man stupid?_

"Wilbur, I-"

"Dad, Dream is outside the walls!" A little boy ran into the room, his hair a bright orange colour with matching fluffy ears and a poofy tail. _A fox shapeshifter?_

"Alright Fundy, I'll be out in a second." The boy named Fundy's eyes scanned Mina, "Stay here, Mina, I don't want you to get involved with our mess." He left her standing in the room in a hurry.

"Tck, I'll get involved if I want to." She followed close behind Wilbur and the fox boy, heading to the entrance she previously entered from. As the boy stated, the man stood proud with his group backing him up.

"Tommy, Wilbur and the rest of L'Manberg. We are at war. There is no mercy, we've burned down Tubbo's house, we've planted TNT canons around your land, we have cobblestone walls at the outside and we've shot one warning shot inside of your walls. We have **no** mercy! We will burn down your houses, we will kill everything inside your walls! And we will take back the land that was rightfully ours. If you do not surrender, I want to see white flags, **white flags** outside of your base by tomorrow, at dawn or **you are dead!"**

Instinctively, Mina stepped in front of Tommy, Tubbo, and Fundy, hiding them from any possible conflict. Dream spotted her for a split second, amusement glossed over his bright green eyes. "Interesting.."

The three men left the grounds, leaving the citizens of L'Manberg to panic. Mina stood back, not exactly understanding what stance she would take in this new battle. Somnium, a grand and powerful land that has stood victorious in every battle fought, or a weak group of rebels with no real means of protection and no experienced soldiers.

"Mina, I thought I told you to stay in the hut." Wilbur frowned as he spoke to her.

"Wilbur, I have decided to assist you and your citizens in the upcoming battle." She declared, stunning those around. "Most of your people are children who have no training, that would leave only a few others." Unsatisfied with his blank expression, she continued, "You need me, this is not an offer you can refuse."

Tommy raised his voice to object but Eret simply placed his hand on the boy's shoulder, silencing him almost immediately.

"This isn't me saying I am joining L'Manberg, all I am doing is assisting you. After this, I will leave and never intervene with future conflicts between Somnium and L'Manberg again."

"Okay then, it's decided." Just as he did earlier, they shook hands and sealed the deal. "Tomorrow we will experience our first battle, men, that being said, everyone must get a good nights rest in preparation." He shooed off the young children.

Now seated at a table--well, a wood plank balanced on top of four sticks--the two men and Mina discussed the plan. "-I have a spare sword to give to one of the kids if necessary." Mina added in, Wilbur nodded.

Eret pointed down at the man-made map, "I believe they will come in through here." With a black marker, he checked off each spot vulnerable location. "It would only make sense, wouldn't it?"

Mina looked in the direction of the checkmarks, noticing how right he was. "Then Eret, you will patrol there first thing in the morning, me and Wilbur will stick to our assigned posts."

"Right."

"We should get some rest, I'm sure fighting while battling exhaustion will be tough." Wilbur stood up, Eret sighed out in relief and rose from the stump he was sat on. "That means you too, Mina."

"You two go in, I'll keep guard just incase they pull anything while you're all asleep."

Silence fell over the land, tall torches barely keeping everything bright. What was she doing? Helping a government form? Her father and brother would be disappointed if they witnessed what she was doing.

Beyond the wall, she noticed what appeared to be an arrow rise above the tree line. A frown grew over her as she rose with her hand on the sheathed sword at her side. Growing closer, doubt spread through her chest. _It could be an ambush._

The small gate creaked as it opened, "Who's there?" She called, her sword now out.

Coming from behind her was the sound of a stick snapping, "I said, who's there?" Finally he came into the light wearing his familiar smile. "Dream, what the hell are you doing here?"

"I felt the need to talk with you, is that so wrong?"

"For the next 32 hours we are enemies so yes, I do believe it's somewhat wrong." She re-sheathed her sword and crossed her arms under her chest.

"Well, you see, that's exactly what I wanted to talk about," He started, "you doing something like this is very...unideal."

"What do you mean by that?"

"We had a deal, didn't we?"

"No, we didn't have a deal. You gave me an offer and I said I would think about it, my answer is pretty clear now, isn't it?" As if he heard nothing, he threw down the bag of diamonds at her feet. "What are you- what are you doing?" She stuttered out.

"You've never disappointed me in the past, I believe you'll do what's right in this situation as well." And with that, he pearled away.

Mina bit onto her bottom lip and reached for the bag, leaving it in the back of her inventory. Walking back to the hut, she noticed a little orange blob sitting down next to the campfire.

"What are you doing awake at this hour, young man?" She sat down next to the little fox who's legs were against his chest.

"I can't sleep." Fundy replied and his left ear twitched, "Why are you still awake?"

She answered with a smile, "Keeping watch so you and the others are safe," His amber eyes met her brown ones for a second, she could read the hesitation that glossed over. "If you want to ask me something, you can, I won't be upset."

"Why are you helping us?"

"That's a good question," She hummed and leaned her head back as she thought about the actual reason. "Because I don't want my brothers getting hurt, I guess."

"Who's your brothers?" His excitement showed through his ears as they pointed up.

Mina shook her head and ruffled his hair, "That's not important, kid, what is important is you getting enough sleep."

"But I don't wanna!" He pouted.

Another thought occurred, she reached into her pocket and withdrew a small pocket knife. "Listen Fundy, tomorrow a lot of terrible things are going to happen and you will be at risk of harm. Keep this with you and all times and use it if necessary," He stared at the knife with wide sparkling eyes, "I don't want you to get hurt, okay? Can you promise me that you will stay safe?" The fox boy nodded at her and confidently took the small weapon out of her hand.

"Thank you!"

"Now go to sleep, you don't want to be tired tomorrow." He complied, folding down the blade and tucking it into the pocket of his pants before running back into the hut.

Sighing quietly, she rested her head against the wall. Why was she doing this? How does fighting for this little worthless country benefit her? It doesn't. She gets absolutely nothing for helping them and she knew that from the start.

Still, she made a promise and now she must fulfil it.

-

Mina awoke to the sound of childish laughter, indeed, the laughter came from no other than the three young boys. "She's awake!" Fundy cheered, Wilbur walked over and waved them away.

"Did you sleep well?" He leant his hand out, pulling her up from the hard ground.

"Sure, the soil was just so refreshing." She replied sarcastically, Wilbur chuckled lowly.

"Right, my apologies, I shouldn’t have let you stay out here. How cruel of me.” Mina quickly shook her head and laughed lightly.

“No, don’t be sorry. This isn’t the first time I’ve slept on soil and it won’t be the last.” His eyes fell and he nodded.

Wilbur then cleared his throat and handed her a buttered loaf of bread, “Eat up, they’ll be here any minute now.” The man walked off to deal with other issues, leaving her alone by the hut. 

The children were laughing while battling each other with sticks, she noticed how Tommy and Tubbo were being so gentle with Fundy and smiled. “Precious, isn’t it?” Eret’s sudden low voice caused her to jump, he chuckled before apologizing. “--They all seem to get along well, you know? It’s nice to see, especially in this age.”

“It is.” She murmured. Eret took something from his pocket and gently placed it in hers. “What’s this?”

Eret continued to watch the children play though his face displayed unease. “Whatever happens here, you should worry about yourself. You owe us nothing and you are perfectly aware of this.” The corner of his lip pulled up. “Don’t blame yourself for whatever happens here either, if any of us-- when any of us perish, don’t take it on yourself, just move on.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“Don’t think about it too hard.” He then excused himself as Wilbur called him over. 

Mind now racing, she remained in the same spot till the sound of arrows being fired drew her out of the thoughts in her head. “They’re here!” Tommy shouted, he ran in the direction of the arrow fire, his friends following close behind him. 

Spotting Fundy running along with them, she followed and grabbed hold of the fox’s arm. “Go to the hut, now!” He flinched at the sound of a nearby explosion. "Can you hear me? I said go, NOW!" Finally the boy ran back inland towards the small hut.

After withdrawing her bow, she began firing shots in the enemies' direction. Another explosion made her ears ring and she was temporarily blinded, she hadn't even realized she was knocked to the ground till she had a sword to her neck.

Sapnap held the sword there closely, saying something she still couldn't hear before lessening the pressure against her neck. An arrow came from the left and just barely missed him, she turned her head to see Tommy and Tubbo fighting over the weapon while likely cursing at each other.

"--I'll kill you both!" She heard Sapnap yell. _Not on my watch._

Pushing herself up and barely managing to grab her bow, she managed to fire one directly at his left shoulder. A scream of pain left his mouth along with some profanities. "Run!" She yelled at the two boys.

Her right ear still had yet to stop ringing and her left was hardly working at all.

Wilbur ran up to her and shoved a potion in her hands, "Follow me, we have a place to go!" She followed close behind, confused with the sudden lack the fire from the Somnium troops.

Wilbur shoved her into a small white building where Tommy, Tubbo, Fundy, and Eret were swiftly drinking potions and patching up. Reminded of the bottle in her hands, she swallowed the contents in one go, soon feeling regenerated. The ringing in her ears came to an abrupt stop and the white dots that clouded her vison subsided.

There was no time for any kind of conversation as arrows began striking the building. "It was a trap." She said harshly, withdrawing her shield and sword.

"There's no time to rest, everyone prepare for their fire!"

Shield prepared and sword gripped tightly in her hand, she ran out and blocked each of their ignited arrows. Tommy, Fundy, and Tubbo bolted towards a nearby tower with Wilbur and Eret following close behind.

Once they reached the top they began raining arrows down, only her and Eret's having flame on them. "They're retreating!" Tubbo cheered, Mina fired one final arrow and stepped back. Sighing quietly, she scanned those around her, relieved to see minimal injuries. 

“Is everybody alright?” Mina questioned, most of them nodded, Wilbur just smiled simply. “Wil?”

“I’m alright, don’t worry about me.”

Eret straightened up and interrupted the silence, “Let’s return back to L’Manberg, I have something that may assist us.” 

-

The walk back to L’Manberg felt far too normal, no sudden ambushes came over them and it was clear the entire way, not a single troop in sight.

“It’s here.” Eret said, using a shovel to dig away the dirt covering the oak door. They blindly followed him in, occasionally praising him for doing this so sneakily. Still, Mina found herself anxiously tugging at the gloves on her hands. 

“Hey- uh, are the chests supposed to be empty?” Tubbo asked.

“Oh hey, what’s this button for?” Tommy then pressed it and the sound of pistons going off alerted all of them. _She was right._

“Down with the revolution, boys!

**_it was never meant to be_**.”


	2. Realization

It all happened in a blur. They rushed in, swords and potions were in action, Dream had her on the floor with his axe to her neck. "Good things don't happen to traitors, Mina." And then she was out.

Mina's eyes opened, facing a dark gray ceiling. She forced herself to sit up and groaned at the ache coming from her shoulder. "You're injured, don't move too much." Wilbur said gently.

He wrung out the red stained cloth and sat on the stool beside the bed, "I'm sorry about this." Once the hot water touched her skin she grit her teeth and gripped the sheets.

He stared up at her and sighed. "It's bad, the weapon used was enchanted so it needs to be cleaned out." She glared and leaned back against the wall, nodding in approval.

"Just get it over with already."

Again, he dabbed the cloth on the large wound with care. "You're good at staying still, Tommy was practically sobbing when I had to tend to his wound."

"Well, I grew up with three brothers, you sort of get used to wounds especially when gifts for holidays are typically weapons of some kind." Her head twitched to the side in agony.

Wilbur halted his actions and gazed up at her, "That sounds familiar." After shaking his head, he continued on. Mina would've scoffed if it weren't for the harsh stinging coming from her collarbone. "If you don't mind me asking, what happened to your family?"

With her head rested against the wall, she let her eyes wander. “We all went our own ways.” Confused, Wilbur retracted the red stained cloth and peered into her eyes.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Well, _fuck_ , uh, both of my big brothers left to do their own thing, my little brother followed the second oldest, leaving me and our father alone till the day I left too.” Wilbur awed quietly, now applying bandages to the wounded flesh. “Wilbur, why did you tell me about your sister?”

He paused to consider his answer, “Because you remind me of her.”

“How?”

Wilbur stood from the stool and grabbed the medical kit from the floor, “It’s the small things about you, Mina.” He said uncertainly, “Not too many people know things about the black market, or even how to wield a sword. You resemble her a lot as well.” His eyes traced back to her face, “You fight well, your style reminds me of my twin brother.”

“Wil-”

Tommy shoved open the door and gently tossed an apple onto the bed, within a minute it dawned on him that he interrupted something. “What? Were you too discussing politics or some shit?”

Wilbur frowned at the teenager, considering telling him off. Though he was too late, Mina already spoke before he could say anything. “No, we were just discussing what happened yesterday.” Wilbur’s eyebrow rose.

Tommy nodded, spotting the stool beside the bed and plopping down onto it. “Thanks for not letting that Sapnap bastard kill me and Tubbo,” He noticed the already blood stained bandages and looked away, “That must suck.”

Mina realized in that exact moment how bad the injury must’ve been, remembering Wilbur’s face when he mentioned how bad it was and now Tommy looking away.

“They didn’t kill you in that room, if you were curious.” Said Wilbur, “I believe Dream was the one to give you that wound.”

Mina brought her hand up to trace the surface of the bandages, feeling from in between her neck and shoulder to just above her chest. “It was.” She confirmed, “Not the first time he’s done that to somebody.”

Both guys eyed her, “What?”

She smiled and shook her head, “Don’t worry about it.”

-

Days passed yet it felt like months to Mina who was forcefully bed ridden. On the sixth day, Wilbur did one final checkup before reluctantly letting her up. “Don’t be too active, Mina, I’m only letting this happen since you’re starting to act like Tommy.” The comment caused a small smile to spread across her face.

L’Manberg was a mess, large holes and debris covered most of the surface, the sight was more than depressing, knowing that a betrayal fueled Somnium's success. Mina leaned down to pick up a piece of red cloth, a scarf? The L'Manberg uniform had a scarf. Pushing away the thought, she pocketed the fabric and continued to walk towards the gate.

Birds chirped in the remaining forest, almost as if they already forgot what happened to most of their home. Scorched tree trunks still laid on the forest floor, the smell of smoke still hovering in the air.

Surprisingly enough, the main trail was left undisturbed, clean of any damage. From out here, nobody would be able to guess what events took place, nobody would applaud the small nation for their efforts, nobody would acknowledge the betrayal of one of the former citizens, it was just history that wouldn't be remembered. Her lip drew into a thin line as the realization struck her.

This really was all for nothing, she gained nothing out of this. Wilbur and Tommy don't even remember her so why was she risking everything to help them?

Having mindlessly walked on for so long, she hadn’t realized how close she had truly gotten to Auri. A large aged wooden sign with the town’s name shut up the voices, her eyes growing wide. “Shit, how long have I been out for?” She sighed heavily, rising her hand up towards her head. “Why was I even coming here?”

Right, supplies.

As always, the town was busy. The streets crowded with tourists and citizens at each booth, children were playing and she could hear some music off in the distance, likely closer to the town’s centre.

Mina was startled by a tap on her injured shoulder, she turned to face the person, an enthusiastic man stood almost directly behind her. A tour guide of some sorts. “Welcome to Auri, how may I assist you?” His voice was very animated, almost annoying.

“I’m fine, really.” She gave a grimace of pain, gritting her teeth as she spoke. The man inspected her, growing wary of her rough appearance. “I’ll be on my way.”

Without another word, she walked away from him, heading towards the town centre. If she recalled correctly, the potion seller is always close there, disguised as a simple drinks booth.

Auri, a beautiful town with a low population though they have the highest visitor rate in all of Somnium. In all her years, she had been here a handful of times, every time was for restocks of items and that one time in childhood - with her family.

As expected, the town centre was bustling, excluding the small booth in the corner of the park. _Bingo_. The salesman spotted her and gave a knowing nod.

“Did somebody run you over?” He chuckled, “This is the worst condition I have ever seen you in.” He added while placing bagged up potion bottles on the counter.

“It’s more like an axe to the neck but close enough.” She brought out the bag of diamonds, waiting for him to announce the high price as per usual.

“Give me 16,” She did a double take, her brows raising. “you obviously need it, don’t stress over it kid.”

“Thank you.”

She paid and quickly hid away the bottles, knowing the town guards would kick her ass in a single second if she was found out. The shoulder wound pulsed, reminding her of the lack of strength she possessed currently. 

Approaching the exit gate, she didn’t pay much attention, figuring that she would be safe there. Till a familiar voice yelled out, “That’s her! Get her, guards!” Mina jumped, turning in the direction where she now noticed a small group of guards running her way.

Weak due to injury, she was almost guaranteed a death here. All of her weapons were far too heavy for her current state, even a small knife wouldn’t assist her at all. Running was also very clearly not an option as she spotted a plain brown bow at the skinniest guys hip.

“Sorry Wil.” She said her goodbye quietly.

“Arms up! You will be shot if you are not willing to comply.” _This is it, you lose your first life here._

“Go ahead, shoot me.” She cocked her head to the side, “I have nothing to lose.” _Wrong move_ , the skinny man drew back the arrow, pointing somewhere around her head area. 

Suddenly, a pink haired man stood in front of her. His red cape fluttered with each movement. “T-Techno?” Eyes wide with shock, Mina stuttered out, voice quivering slightly. 

“Are you sure you want to start this?” Technoblade asked the four in his well-known monotone voice. “-If you do, just start firing and I’ll put my sword through your chest.” 

“You god damn Pig, keep your head out of this!” 

Techno clicked his tongue and stepped forward, his axe resting against his netherite-clad shoulder. “You see, I can’t do that.” He glanced over his shoulder, “Especially when somebody I know is being threatened.”

The guards exchanged glances, all appearing doubtful. “Fine, you’ll be let off the hook this time. Take the girl and get out of here.” Techno didn’t even flinch when he turned around and grabbed hold of Mina’s arm, dragging her out of the town.

“Techno- Techno, what the hell are you doing here?”

“I believe a ‘thank you’ is due.”

She forced her arm out from his grip and stood in front of him, forcing him to stop walking. “I have not seen you for over seven years, don’t you think _I_ deserve an explanation?”

He stared at her for a moment and shrugged his shoulders, “Yeah probably, but in the middle of the pathway to a town you were almost killed in definitely isn’t the best choice to give it.”

“Okay, where do you suggest we go then?” She sassed, tucking her arms under her chest.

He considered it for a second, acknowledging the thought wordlessly.

“Are you just not going to say anything?”

“If you stand there like a moron then no, hurry up nerd.”

-

The duo sat down on two separate tree stumps, the air surrounding them filled with a thick tension. “So it’s been seven years, huh? That makes you..early twenties yeah?” She hesitated then nodded, having to count in her head.

“You’re almost thirty now, aren’t you?” Techno’s eyes looked up in thought, he then nodded.

“I’m twenty-eight now, I guess that would make Tommy about, what, sixteen?” 

“Yeah, he surely looks it too.” She replied, drawing shapes in the dirt with her foot. “Wilbur still looks the same, just more mature, having a kid will do that I suppose.”

“That idiot has a child?”

“His name is Fundy, he’s a sweet kid.”

Technoblade peered over at her, “When was the last time you seen any of them?” He questioned hesitantly.

Mina’s lip curved up, “This morning,” she covered up the drawing she created on the ground, “our idiot brother has developed a nation separate from Somnium.” 

Techno appeared unphased, ignoring the sentence almost completely. “What about the old man? When’s the last time you saw him?”

Mina clicked her tongue and sucked in a deep breath, “It’s been about five years, maybe more.” Her thumb caressed the piece of fabric in her pocket and she threw her head back, staring up past the trees, “One day he mentioned you and Wil for the first time in a while, he told me to go find you guys once I left, then some time later he said he had to go and I haven’t seen him since.”

“Oh, I see.” 

Techno took off the crown that sat on his head, placing it on the stump between them. “So that leads back to my original question, where the hell have you been?”

“Honestly, I’ve been everywhere, I haven’t settled anywhere.”

"Me either.." She trailed off, watching the clouds float away above them. Techno focused on her for a second, it had dawned on him how long it's been since he last seen her, how much she had changed in those years-. "Techno, I.., I believe I should start heading back, Wilbur might be worried."

As she stood, Techno grabbed her wrist. "Take this and put it on your wound when you get where you're going, just don't tell anyone where you got it, alright?" He placed the bottle in her gloved hand before releasing his grip. "Don’t die three times, Mina."

Mina pocketed the bottle, her lip tugged up as she waved at him. "Nice seeing you, Techno."

-

The sun had set and the cold weather arrived nearly an hour previous, it was almost unbearable. Mina wasn't too sure whether she was on the verge of fainting or if it was genuinely snowing. The cold drops hitting her face answered the question.

Lights lit up the path through the capitol, luckily pushing away all the monsters stalking her from the darkness.

Snow crunched under her boots with each torturous step.

The damaged walls of L'Manberg came into her vision. From what she could see, all lights were out aside from the lanterns spread across the blown up land. Of course, they needed sleep, and she was aware of how ridiculously late it was.

She sat down by the wall of the hut and took out the mysterious bottle Techno gifted to her. There were no labels of what was in it, just a small scribbled on sticker saying "do not consume, body usage only"

So she peeled back her jacket and carefully removed the bandages before popping the cork. Contemplating her next course of option, she bit her lip and poured the pinkish liquid on the healing wound.

A strong stinging sensation came over her, causing her to grit her teeth and press her head back against the hut. A whole minute passed of what she decided was in the top ten worst pains of her life, if any description would be requested, she would mention it feeling like her flesh was literally being burnt.

Quietly releasing the breath she was withholding, Mina brought her gloved hand up and hesitantly put it onto the once wounded flesh. Eyes now wide, she moved her hand around in search of the wound. "It's gone?" Only scar tissue was left behind, yet only faintly.

"What's gone?" Mina tugged up her coat sleeve and turned towards the voice, a blond haired boy stood by the entrance of the hut, rubbing his tired eyes.

She shook her head, making sure to kick away the bottle as she got up. “Nothing that you need to worry about, what are you doing awake?”

“Tubbo kicked me so I decided that I didn’t want to sleep anymore.”

Mina nodded in understanding, noticing a fresh bandage wrapped around his torso, “What is that from?”

“Dream, we 1v1′d and I lost.” Mina frowned at Tommy’s vague explanation, she crossed her arms under her chest.

“Why did you even attempt to 1v1 Dream, Tommy? He’s a grown man and you are a child! You shouldn’t have even challenged-”

“Who are you to tell me what to do? I just met you!”

“No Tommy, you didn’t “just meet me”, you just don’t remember me. Why should that matter in the first place? I am an adult worried for your safety!” Tommy scoffed, stepping closer.

“Why do you even care, Mina? It’s not like you’re apart of L’Manberg anyways.”

“Because...because I have common sense? Maybe because I know kids aren’t supposed to be on the battle field and risking their lives? Listen Tommy, I was born into conflict, I know what it feels like which is why I am trying to get you and the other boys to stay away!”

“Me and Tubbo can make our own choices, we don’t need the advice from an outsider.” 

She wavered and bit the inside of her bottom lip, “Alright then, just forget I said anything, go back inside.” 

Tommy’s eyebrows forced together in a pronounced frown. What good would arguing be anyways? 

Once he returned back inside, Mina retrieved a couple of bottles from her satchel and placed them down on the makeshift table. Reaching for a piece of paper from her pocket, a note slipped out. A tad bit blood stained and torn with a few smudge marks, she realized very soon that it was the note Eret handed her before the battle broke out. 

In fine handwriting, he wrote; _I believe you will do what is right for yourself._

“The nerve of this bastard.” Mina clicked her tongue and crumpled up the note, tucking it into her coat pocket. 

The pen in her hand hovered over the new slip of paper, her mind wandering as she contemplated what to write to her brothers. Then, she decided and let the ink touch the paper.


	3. Where You're Supposed To Be

_“To Wilbur,_

_How unfortunate is it that once we met once again, you couldn’t remember me. It does hurt, however I believe I will be okay, I know you will be as well._

_I fought a battle for you and the nation you created in hopes of you remembering me, in hopes that you and Tommy would both remember everything. Though I can now see that my wishes were far from doable._

_A deal is a deal, meaning I shouldn’t stay in your nation any longer. With all my heart I hope for you and Tommy to be safe. Don’t get into anymore trouble, brother. I will miss you._

_Till we meet again, Goodbye. -Mina”_

“Wilbur, what is that?” Tommy asked, stretching his arms from a long nights rest. Wilbur remained silent, tears forming in his eyes, his hands shaking. “Wilbur?”

“Tommy, we fucked up.”

-

Mina knew that the weather would be bad, she knew how cold it gets during winter, yet she stand in the freezing snow while staring up at the massive castle. "What the hell is this?

“Mina, what a surprise, I didn’t expect to see you here.” Eret's deep tone took her by surprise. "I see that you left L'Manberg."

"What is this place?"

"This my castle, I'm the crowned king of Somnium." Mina struggled to hold back her laugh causing Eret to raise his eyebrow, "What's so funny?"

"Do you really think Dream is going to give you any kind of authority?"

Eret just smiled and walked past Mina slowly, only turning his head to speak to her. "Come in, you'll freeze to death out here." Eret didn’t wait for her, confident that she would accept the offer. And she did.

The castle, clearly under construction, was multilayered with very few colours in sight. Their steps echoed as Mina followed Eret down the dark hall, only then did it occur that this could be a trap.

“How many lives do you have left, Mina?” Eret questioned suddenly.

Mina came to a stop, glaring at the back of Eret’s head. “Why do you want to know?”

The king chuckled, turning to face her. “Right, I shouldn’t have asked like that,” He took slow, paced steps in her direction, “I was just curious, seeing as you weren’t too worried during the battle last week.”

Eyes averted, Mina breathed out in relief. “My lives aren’t something for you to worry about.” She firmly stated.

He nodded his head, “Understood, I apologize for overstepping.” Gods, is he always so polite?

“You can sleep in here for the night, if something happens, my room is right down the hall.” Using a silver key, he unlocked the dark oak door and pushed it open. A large white, grey, and black room welcomed her, a large bed with black covers was pressed up against the cold wall, a vanity and dresser against the other wall. “Goodnight, Mina.” He said just before shutting the door.

She approached the lantern by the bed, igniting it using a match left on the side table. Deep down, she knew associating with the man who so deeply hurt the only family she had left was wrong. Could she really just continue on with her life? Go back to being nothing again? Or was it already too late, had she gone too far when she sided with L’Manberg?

Every question that came up went unanswered, forcing her deeper into her anxiety. 

She laid there for what felt like a lifetime before drifting off into sleep.

_“Alright kids, is everyone ready?” The four children nodded in excitement, even Technoblade, famous for his indifference. Philza grinned and took out four wrapped items. Wilbur went to reach for one of them only to have Phil give him the Dad look._

_“What are they?” Mina asked, Phil smiled in response, gesturing her and her brothers to sit down. Once they all were sat on the carpet by the fireplace, he began placing the items in front of each of them._

_Techno smacked Wilbur’s grabby hand, mumbling something that went unheard from Phil and the two younger kids. “Okay, go ahead.”_

_Tommy finished unwrapping first, revealing a detailed wooden sword, the young boy yelled out a victorious cheer. “Suck it!”_

_Techno and Wilbur got two different object of the same colour; Techno, a diamond sword with his name engraved on the blade, and Wilbur, a guitar with his name engraved in the base. “Thanks.” Techno tried to withhold his grin, their father just pat the pink hair on top of his head. Wilbur was grinning so wide that Mina feared his mouth would tear as he jumped to hug Phil._

_Phil crouched down in front of Mina, gesturing towards her present. “Aren’t you curious?” She reached for the thin ribbon that held the flimsy paper in place and pulled it apart, uncovering an enchanted bow and a bundle of arrows. Her eyes widened, tears brimming._

_“Thank you, dad.” Tommy gasped and reached for one of the arrows, Mina, seeing him in the corner of her eye, picked them up and hugged them close to her chest._

_The three boys huddled closer in curiosity, all wanting to take a look at the cool new object she had received._

_After some time, she could vaguely remember Phil taking her outside while Techno, Tommy, and Wilbur fooled around inside to practice. He would awe at some of the shots she was able to make, “You’re really good, Mina, not even Techno picked it up this quickly.”_

_“Really?”_

_“Really.”_

Mina woke up with tear stained cheeks and a tense body, she let her head rest against the pillow and put her arms up against her eyes. “Why did I have to remember that now of all times?” She whispered quietly.

A few seconds of self pity later did she get up, noticing that some folded clothes lay at the end of the bed. The note on top read _, “Having ripped clothes won’t be very helpful during winter, wear these. Don’t worry about the price. ~Eret”_

The clothes given were almost identical to what she already had on, there was just no splotches of blood or tears where a weapon had previously cut. The feeling of gratitude took over and she found herself genuinely smiling.

The castle appeared significantly more beautiful in natural daylight, proven by the glow of the yellow sun against the pale gray brick and the paintings strategically placed inches apart.

Mina found it hard to locate the stairs with the lengthy hallways, finding the way after ten or so minutes of walking. With each step, she caught a whiff of food, what kind? She wasn't all too sure, but her stomach was already screaming to be fed.

Eret sat alone at the big table in the centre of the large room, swirling the water around in his cup. "Good morning." He said, his voice deep from sleep.

"Morning," she replied, "Thanks, for the clothes and for your hospitality."

"You are very welcome." Tension grew between them as they both stared at each other, this continued for a few minutes till Eret spoke again. "Mina, you know what I've been curious about?" She raised her head, acknowledging that he was talking. "Why did you help L'Manberg?" He asked while resting his head on his fingers, "You, a person so skilled and known to be a lone wolf, why help them? A small, worthless nation?"

Mina played with the cuff of her jacket, "Because, Eret, not everybody craves power." He nodded, beginning to laugh.

"That isn't what I asked you, Mina."

"But I gave you an answer. Unlike you, I didn't do it for power, I did it for the people involved."

He appeared satisfied with the answer and stood up from his chair, "It must hurt to have Wilbur and Tommy not remember you," Eret smirked seeing her startled expression. "I was awake when you and Fundy were speaking, it merely took me a second to realize who you were referring too."

"What do get out of mentioning this?"

"Amusement, seeing you fumble is quite entertaining."

"Eret-"

“I also wanted to propose an offer,” He waited for her reaction before continuing, “you could stay and be my guard, you would have a place to stay as well as food and drink, it’s quite a generous offer if I must say so.”

Mina studied his face with mocking eyes, her mouth twisted into an unamused smile. “I apologize, Eret, but I don’t believe I can accept your offer.” She snickered, “Do you genuinely believe I would work for someone who aided the pain of those I care about?”

“I see, what a shame.”

-

Meanwhile, L’Manberg continued to grow it’s population and borders, rising higher each day as a nation. The local villages even began acknowledging L’Manberg in trade discussions. Mina knew she no longer would be able to ignore them, after all, talk of a woman fighting alongside them spread through each village like wildfire, it was only a matter of time.

Mina mindlessly swirled the water around in the mug in her hand, lost in the memories of that battle fought many months previous. “-Hey lady, you hear about those L’Manberg fellas?” The bartender sparked up a conversation in the dead bar, “Rumour has it that a woman fought with them, remarkable, right?”

She glanced up through her dark eyelashes, “Yeah, really.”

“And they lost too, guess they should’ve known better.” The older man shook his head after letting out an exaggerated sigh.

Unamused and frankly uninterested in the discussion, Mina got up from her chair and dropped a handful of change on the counter. Wordlessly, she left. 

Things returned back to the way they were pre-L’Manberg, Mina was still alone, left to travel village to village. Oddly enough, she felt...lonely. After many years of being all alone, after having no one but herself, she was missing something, someone, _someone's_.

Unintentionally she found herself facing the gates of L’Manberg, a shiver ran down her spine at the thought of seeing her brothers again after running away. What would she say? _Sorry for running away, I was just tired of being a nobody to you._

It was far too late to turn and walk away. Too late, as Tommy dropped the bundle of logs he was struggling to hold up. “Mina?” Too late, as Tubbo jogged over, curious as to why his friend stopped walking. Too late, as Wilbur left his newly built house to see what the commotion was about. Too late, as Fundy ran over with a wide grin plastered on his face. Too late, as she was struggling to hold back tears.

“I don’t even know why I’m here.” 

Wilbur approached her, tilting up her head using his hand. “Because you belong here, with us,” He put his hands on her shoulders, _“with your family.”_

Tommy hesitated as he hid partially behind Wilbur, “Y-you should stay here, I-I think it’s weird with just Niki, we need more women.” Fundy nodded enthusiastically, grabbing onto her jacket sleeve.

“You are going to stay, aren’t you?”

Mina’s eyes glossed over, a short shy laugh fell from her mouth. “I don’t get much of a choice here, do I?”


	4. For Power

The scorching heat from the sun made working unbearable, especially when the work was hard labor. Mina grumbled a bunch of angry nonsense under her breath, Jack and Tommy shot each other a look. “Should we try to cheer her up?” 

Tommy dropped the logs in his arms, raising his eyebrows up at Jack, “Go ahead, you might not live long enough to do so.” 

Jack, seeing this as a challenge, confidently brushed off his hands and strolled over to the woman. Before he could speak, Mina already met his gaze with a sharp glare, a warning sign if anything. Jack swallowed down the lump that appeared in his throat, “So, nice weather we’re having today?”

“Fuck off, Jack.” 

Jack’s mouth hung open then clamped shut, Mina refocused on the construction at hand, acting as if that interaction never happened. 

Tommy bit his tongue when Jack scurried back to his post, the boy proceeded to shoot looks at him continuously, rubbing salt in the wound. “Stop it, Tommy.” 

“I told you.”

“I know, Tommy.”

“I just think it’s really funny how-”

“Get back to work, Tommy.”

“Oh c’mon! You aren’t really going to get all serious now are ya Jack?” Tommy teased while picking up a piece of stone. 

“Hm? No, I just think we should get back to work. If we work hard enough then we should finish by the end of today.”

Mina made a sound, agreeing with Jack. “Exactly, no time to rest for us.” 

Tommy puffed out his cheeks in annoyance, going back to work in the loud silence. He occasionally shot looks at his sister who was working diligently, so concentrated, clearly deep in thought. 

Her brow was angled down, her lip drew into a tight line. “Mina?” As if she didn’t hear, she kept hammering. Tommy frowned and returned to his own work.

Off in his home, Wilbur sat at his desk while reading over numerous papers. If he had known how stressful being a leader was, maybe he wouldn’t have declared himself as one.

Tubbo gently wrapped his knuckles against the dark oak door, drawing Wilbur’s attention away from the document in front of him. “Come in, Tubbo.” The brunet walked in with his hands folded anxiously in front of him. “What’s wrong?”

Suddenly alert, he rapidly shook his head, his light brown hair bounced side to side with each shake. “No, no, nothing’s wrong. I just- I just wanted to tell you that Niki and I finished expanding the garden!” 

Wilbur gave Tubbo a tired smile, “Good work you two, get some rest now.” Tubbo nodded, still standing in the exact same spot. Wilbur immediately pushed aside his document and gestured to the stool in front of his desk. “Clearly there is something else on your mind, might as well say it.” 

Tubbo perched on the edge of the stool and focused on the wooden desk, Wilbur sighed and leaned forward, forcing himself into Tubbo’s sight. “You can tell me anything, Tubbo, I’m here to listen.”

“Don’t you think it’s unfair that Mina is doing so much work for L'Manberg?” He blurted out, “I mean, she said she is only here as a minor helping hand yet she has still done so much for us.”

Wilbur leaned his head on his hands, a small smile on his face. “It’s her choice, she can back out any time she wants to.”

Tubbo, unsatisfied with the response he got, huffed out, “Do you think she would though? She’s doing so much because she cares for you and Tommy and you’re just using her!” 

“See, we have very limited people Tubbo, we take whatever labor we can get, even if it seems wrong.”

The door swung open, ending the conversation as quickly as it started. Wilbur sighed again, rubbing his temple as Tommy and Jack stormed in, dirt footprints covered the floor as well as sawdust and small pebbles. “Are you two fucking serious?” 

“We’re done!” Jack declared, a look of relief spread over his face, “We are finally fucking done that stupid build, took us two whole days! Our payment best be good, Wil.”

“Your pay is getting to live here,” Wilbur replied obviously, scowling at the mess his office had become in a matter of seconds. “you are also going to mop the damn floor after cleaning yourselves up.” 

The three bickered while Tubbo sat in awkward silence, noticing a missing presence. “Guys- guys! Where is Mina?” The fighting came to a stop as they looked around the office.

“Who cares, she’s probably outside or something.” Tommy shrugged.

Mina swept the floor meticulously, running over each corner numerous times to confirm it’s cleanliness. Niki knocked on the ajar door, peeking in. “Mina, is it just you in there?”

“Yeah, just me,” Niki came in with her hands hidden behind her back with her usual friendly bright smile on her face. “Be careful, it’s still quite dirty.”

“Oh, the dirt isn’t something that bothers me,” She admired the build, uttering a distant ‘wow’. “How did you guys do this in two days? It looks so cool!”

“Well, none of us really slept or took too many breaks.” Mina said, leaning the broom against the wall then glancing over at Niki, “Not too sound rude but what are you doing in here?” 

“Oh, that’s right,” she brought her arms out from behind her back and handed Mina a brown paper bag, “this is for all the hard work you’ve done for L’Manberg!” Mina stared at the bag in Niki's hand with a flustered gaze. "Here, take it." Niki made Mina take the item, grinning widely.

"I-...uh...wow, uh thank you." Inside the bag was a small cardboard box with half a dozen muffins. Mina could feel Niki’s eyes staring directly at her face, now under a decent amount of pressure, she lowered her gaze while saying ‘thank you’. 

“I wasn’t too sure what exactly you liked so I decided to make two different types, I tried asking Wil but he didn’t know..”

“I appreciate it, thanks Niki.” The girls blue eyes twinkled at the cute reaction, to protect their possible friendship she bit her tongue and simply continued to smile. “Uh, anyways, I-I uh, I need to finish cleaning up and whatever, we can talk later if you want to.” Niki nodded, leaving as quickly as she appeared.

Mina waited for the crunch of gravel to become distance before resting her head against the oak wall, exhaling loudly. "Why do you have to be such a moron? Acting so tough when you could be making a friend."

That sound she recognized, the sound of gravel crunching under someone’s feet alerted her and she pushed herself away from the wall, reaching for the broom as if nothing happened. "Oh hey Mina, there you are, we were just wondering what happened to you." Jack picked up the second broom and tossed it at Tommy.

Mina nodded gently, eyeing Jack who was now leaning against the wall as Tommy started sweeping. Since when was Tommy so willing to do what he is told? "Hey Jack, I actually think you should be helping Tommy. Here, you can use the broom I have," She forced it into his hand and to prevent him from returning it, she stuffed her hands in her pockets, "also remember to wash the windows and maybe the floor if it doesn't seem clean enough, wouldn't want future citizens to be unhappy now, would you?"

Without waiting for a single ounce of protest, Mina walked out of the house and ignored Jack's raising voice. "M-Mina? Come on, this isn't fair!" To further rub it in, Mina turned around and waved at the two guys.

"What a bitch!" Jack exclaimed.

Tommy flicked the broom at him causing dust to rise around them and dirty both of them even more, "Oh shut up Manifold, it's just a bit of cleaning."

"You seriously don't care that she just ditched us like it was nothing?"

He shrugged his shoulders and swept his small dirt pile out of the door, "Not particularly," Jack's eyebrow rose at the response, Tommy seen this and sighed, "stop bitching and just do the work, it won't take much longer anyways."

"What the hell's gotten into you, huh? Never took you as the type to submit so easily."

Tommy focused his attention on the chore, trying to ignore what Jack said, but the more he let it sit in his head the more it annoyed him. Ten minutes passed of the boy's brow being creased in thought yet he still couldn't come up with a reply. Then it dawned on him, Jack was right, why wasn't he upset? He and Jack had worked just as hard as she did so why were they doing the rest?!

_Because she doesn't owe you anything_.

"That's it, it's because she doesn't owe us anything." Tommy muttered under his breath.

"What the hell are you mumbling about?"

"Nothing, nothing, don't worry about it."

Wilbur frowned at the product presented to him, the farm expansion was barely big enough to sustain their current population and as things were growing, it wouldn't sustain even a dozen more people. "Is this it?"

Tubbo flinched, doubt growing with hearing the man's tone, "Yeah, m-me and Niki thought it looked good!"

Unsatisfied, Wilbur's eyes narrowed. "It's not enough, expand it by a couple more yards." Tubbo's face fell and his eyes ran over the field, "Tubbo, we have a growing population, this will only feed what we have now, in a few months it will only feed about half."

"Right, I apologize, we'll start on it immediately."

"Good."

Wilbur could sense his migraine growing, each appearing problem contributing to the pounds of stress that rest on his shoulders. Chatter sounded from the marketplace, new booths lining what was formerly an empty road. “This place is such a mess, why would anyone want to live here?” His attention was brought to the small family, the oldest woman, the mother was frowning. 

“We don’t have much of a choice honey, all the other places are charging far more and we can’t afford it.”

“Ugh, I know.”

Wilbur kept walking and didn’t stop till he got to his house. Fundy sat on the front lawn playing with a wooden sword. “Dad!” The fox boy cheered, dashing over immediately. He feigned a smile as he pat his boy’s head.

“I’m feeling a bit tired son, mind staying quiet while a take a quick rest?” Fundy’s ears lowered as his disappointment grew apparent.

“Okay.”

Mina knocked on the librarians door, waiting patiently for any sign of life. After a couple of seconds the oak door creaked open, an old man peeked through the crack. “What do you want?” He grumbled.

“I need to find a book or two, I won’t cause too much of a ruckus.” The old man gave her a once over before opening the door wider, welcoming her into the ancient building. The history section was in the far right corner, the furthest from the entrance.

“If you take anything just don’t let me see, I don’t care.”

She scanned each book spine, searching for any kind of book that would be of use. “Gotcha.” She grinned in victory as she found the book titled ‘ _Potions Through The Ages’_

Mina didn’t want too much, just information on that one potion. She was unfamiliar with that one given to her, and with each page flip she grew even more concerned. Till it caught her eye. “Potion of healing?” _‘This potion has the ability to immediately heal the user of any physical wound, in extreme situations it will only leave a faint scar. However, it is now impossible to brew such a potion as the ingredient “Dragon’s Breath” is unattainable..’_

Her free hand touched the location of where the wound had been, “This is it, there’s no other potion that does the same so how did he have one?” Instead of putting too much thought into it, she pocketed the book and continued scanning the shelves. Upon realizing how little interest everything gave her, she went to leave.

Another book caught her eye, one titled _‘The Life System.’_

“Fiction in the non-fiction area? Tsk.”

The large book slipped out of her grasp, landing on it’s back. Every page was lined with gold flakes and the writing was written by hand. “Maybe not..” The pages were frail from age, gold flakes were falling off with each movement and she feared that the entire thing would fall out from it’s cover. So she pocketed that one too.

The old man ignored her when she passed by his desk and out the door, clearly waiting for her to leave. 

It was certainly risky to walk into Somnium territory as a friend of L’Manberg, those she passed by made that obvious with their whispers and stairs. Mina did make it quite obvious who she sided with, the red fabric tied around her left thigh gave it away. 

Most shops and street vendors started refusing those who appeared to associate with L’Manberg, while this was barely an inconvenience to the others, it meant that she could no longer freely travel as she once had before. 

Just a bit ahead, Mina squinted to see the trio. Dream, Sapnap, and Punz stood in the middle of the pathway, seemingly discussing amongst themselves. Her eyebrows furrowed a sigh fell from her lips, "The long way it is."

She wasn't prepared to fight all three of them and that was obvious. Clearly, though, they didn't care.

Punz yanked her back by her shoulder, trapping her in between the three of them. "Well well well, look what we've caught boys, a little L'Manberg rat." Mina glared at the blond, slowly rotating to consider possible exits. There were none. Well, none that would get her out alive.

Each of them stood tall and confident, mocking grins spread across their faces. “Mind telling us what you’re doing outside that cage of yours?” Sapnap brought his face closer to hers and grabbed hold of her chin. “All the way out here...where you could be caught.” Mina swatted his hand away and licked at the back of her teeth. At this point, she was fucked.

“What do you want?” She snapped back in retaliation, the men collectively awed. “if you came here to kill me just get it over with, I have things to do.” It was not the best idea to challenge them and yet, she couldn’t stop the words from flowing out of her mouth. 

Punz and Sapnap both glanced back at Dream who stepped forward, the corners of his mouth turned up as he drew closer with each footstep. “Now why would we kill you?” Her eyes grew wide as his face grew closer to her own. “Why, why would _I_ kill you?” 

“Then why do you have me surrounded?”

Sapnap clicked his tongue, “Are we not allowed to say hello?”

“Yeah, do you not appreciate us taking time to talk to you?”

Mina scowled and remained silent, hoping for a miracle. Sapnap nudged Punz and looked towards Dream, “What do you say we send those L’Manberg morons a message?” Dream’s eyebrows raised and he motioned for Sapnap to continue, “Let’s take one of her lives away.” 

Dream hummed in thought, “Not yet, that won’t help us for now.” Her eyes went round, the man in green tilted her chin upwards, leaning over to whisper, “You owe me, Mina, don’t forget this.” He backed away, waving at his friends, “Let’s go, we’re just wasting our time here.”

Sapnap whined out a string of pleas, dragging his sword behind him. “C’mon, just let me at her! Not like she’s important or anything!” 

Mina sighed out in relief, content with the temporary freedom. Then it hit her. He said _yet_. Don’t kill her..yet.

_“you owe me.”_

“Fuck.” She whispered.

Tommy and Wilbur stood face to face as Wilbur told Tommy his new plan. Tommy grinned and nodded, agreeing with his older brother. Mina opened the door without warning, feeling the tension in the air rise. “Oh, sorry, did I interrupt something?” 

Tommy, unsure, waited for Wilbur to answer. “No, actually I think it’s good that you’re here.” He closed the door behind her, returning to his former position. “Tommy and I are going to hold an election.” 

“What?” Mina exclaimed, “What the hell made you decide to do that?”

“My people aren’t listening to me, Mina, they don’t show respect. I believe it will help us gain more power without violence.”

Mina rolled her eyes, “What do you even need power for in the first place? You said yourself that L’Manberg is a free nation yet here you are treating it otherwise!”

“I know you don’t understand, Mina, I just wanted you to know since this election will bring more people-”

“More people who won’t listen to you,” silence filled the room, Tommy awkwardly fiddled off to the side and anxiously chewed on his lip. “-Listen, Wilbur, you can do whatever you want but I do hope you consider the possibilities of problems that will likely arise from this.” 

"Like what, Mina? Care to tell me what problems may arise?"

"You may gain a political opponent, has that not occured to you?"

"Really now? Who do you think is going to run against me?"

"Anybody can and likely will, you can't just have an election with one party."

Tommy grew impatient hearing his two siblings fight, their raising voices made his head hurt. "Can you two shut the fuck up for once? We're going through with the election anyways so what's the point in arguing?"

Mina's arms crossed under her chest, "Right, whatever you say Tommy." Her eyes glossed over with a fiery emotion, "You're on your own now Wilbur."


	5. The Final Rally

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> shorter than usual i apologize

Decorations lined the street posts and the population grew a solid fifty people, chatter spread throughout the entirety of Somnium, talk of the first election in decades was an event to not be missed.

L'Manberg was bright, cheerful, lively. The people had never appeared happier. Then there was Mina, sat off in the distance watching bitterly. She didn't sign up for government, she didn't sign up to watch her brothers start something that they were taught to despise since young. Yet there she was, seeing Wilbur shake hands with multiple notable Somnium leaders.

Mina flinched at the sound of a knock at her door, a sound that gradually grew rarer by the days. Was answering necessary? Technically not, but it is rude to ignore whoever was on the other side. Whoever was behind the door knocked again, refusing to leave till she opened up.

Niki's smile was bright as usual, the sight that typically made Mina happy only added to her bitterness. "Mina, hi! I-I wanted to check up on you, it's been a couple of days since anyone last saw you."

Mina nodded dismissively, "I'm fine, just staying away from all this political shit."

Niki let herself in, keeping her eyes locked Mina. "Tomorrow the candidates are holding the final rally in the town's centre... I was wondering if you would come," her lip pulled into a thin line at Mina's reaction, "Quackity and George are running, me and Jack, too."

"Really?" Mina hummed, approaching the open window. "You must've come here to tell me that, then."

"So will you come?"

Mina rested her forearms against the window sill, staring off at the expanding country. "Maybe."

An idea came to Niki, an idea she knew would work. "Fundy wants to see you, Mina, he's growing quite a lot recently. He should also have a guardian while Wilbur and Tommy are busy."

Mina glanced back at Niki who was sitting at the small coffee table, "Right, foxes age faster than most species, he must be around 12 or 13 if his body is aging with him."

Niki nodded, "Around that, yes," she stood up and walked over to where Mina was standing, "so what do you say, will you come?"

"My answer stays the same, Niki, maybe."

And her answer remained the same for the rest of the day, switching back and forth on how close to yes or no she truly was, it was frankly driving her insane. Government. What is and has been formed and developed. That is what her brothers are doing. But Niki mentioned Fundy, she can't just let him roam around alone in a place full of strangers, can she?

The sun had set and the sky grew dark, she was still laying in her bed with her arm over her face. Even if it's politics, she should still support those she loves, right? Plus, it's just some speeches, not anything excessively important.

By the time she drew a conclusion, the sunrise lit up her flat, covering the small room with an orange and yellow glow. She really stayed up the entire night stressing over this thing. Guess that leaves her no choice but to go.

Of course, this decision takes energy to put in motion, so she continued to lay in bed telling herself to get up.

After about three hours, she finally got up and changed, making her way to the centre of L'Manberg. She failed to notice the large podium built during her time inside, a wide area of land in front of it paved with stone and rows of seats lined up equally. "This is really happening."

"Indeed it is." Mina turned to Wilbur, looking him up and down.

"You look tired."

"I could say the same for you, did you not sleep well?"

"Are you anxious? After all, it's only a matter of seconds before people begin showing up." She dodged the question with ease and continued avoiding her brothers gaze.

Wilbur smiled at her and nodded, knowing she could still faintly see him in the corner of her eye. "Who wouldn't be anxious? It's not everyday that an election is held is it now?"

"Right."

Their conversation was cut short as groups of people flooded the area, finding their own respective seats. Wilbur grabbed her firmly by the shoulder and pulled her towards the front row where Fundy was sat with Tubbo. "Stay here with them, okay? I'll come find you afterwards."

Fundy's wide grin gained her attention as Tubbo tugged her sleeve, forcing her down onto the wood chair. "Are you excited? I certainly am." Tubbo spoke with enthusiasm, gripping Mina's hand tightly in his own.

Fundy refused to remain seated, he jumped up out of excitement as Wilbur tapped the mic on centre stage lightly. "Hello everyone, thank you for coming to our rally," He paused for the cheers to sound, "My name is Wilbur Soot, the current leader of L'Manberg." Wilbur's eyes wandered around the crowd, stopping as he spotted Dream in the far row, "I decided to hold this election as I believed it was unfair of me to declare myself ruler and leave my people without an option, hopefully this makes up for that." Cheers sounded from all around her as he stepped back, letting the people finish up.

"Today marks a momentous time for our nation, another step forward in what is to be a long and everlasting history.” He took a pause, then gestured over to noticeably stressed Quackity over to the microphone. “And now I would like to welcome one of the candidates.” 

Quackity approached the podium wearing a loose black suit and a navy blue beanie, he fiddled with a ring on his middle finger before taking his spot. "Well, hello everybody! My, uh, my name is Quackity and I am running for the position of President of L'Manberg," His voice was loud and high, making it impossible to ignore him, "unfortunately my running mate George had to...run some very urgent errands which is why he couldn't make it today."

He surveyed the crowd he was speaking to before starting, "Under my administration, L'Manberg will flourish into an incredible nation, a nation that will not be beaten down by anybody. We will not answer to tyranny, we will not be pushed down!" A decent portion of the crowd cheered, a rate which could almost be concerning to Wilbur. "That being said, vote for Quackity3030!"

All his anxiety appeared to have vanished as he waved while leaving the podium. Wilbur called the next running team up to the podium, Niki and Jack both walked up to the microphone stand, Niki stood off to the side while Jack took his position.

"Hello citizens of L'Manberg and the many others who have come together to join us.." His voice faded out as something in the corner of her eye caught her attention. A shining light flashed repeatedly and it was starting to get on her nerves.

"Stay here with Fundy, alright?" Mina whispered to Tubbo before standing up and sneaking towards the light.

The shine stopped as she drew closer, instead, an arm reached out and pulled her in between the two buildings. Dream let go of her when he was certain nobody followed. "What do you want?" Mina sneered, Dream turned around with his usual sly grin.

"I just wanted to know how you were doing with all this politics, you aren't exactly a fan of what's going on right now."

"Don't worry about me, Dream, I don't need my name running through your head."

His head tilted to the side as his eyebrows rose, "Oh love, it already does."

She rolled her eyes and stepped back, distancing herself further from the man. "I'm not interested in whatever the hell you're trying to do, just tell me what you want so I can go back to the rally."

Dream sighed an exaggerated sigh, "I thought you deserved a warning for some of the upcoming events, I can't have you dying or anything now, can I?"

Suppressing the urge to plunge her sword into his stomach, Mina ran her tongue over her teeth, "What events?"

"Another opponent is on their way, I thought you would appreciate the heads up incase he wins."

"Is that all you're going to say? No specifics?" He smiled and nodded, raising up his hand and placing it on the scar on her neck.

"Hm, it healed better than what I expected."

Mina slapped his hand away, face flushed with disgust. "Who the hell do you think you are?"

He lowered his hand, tucking it into his pocket. "Well I suppose we should head back, wouldn't want Wilbur to get suspicious now, would we?" His gaze made her uncomfortable for reasons she had yet to identify, unease settled in the pit of her stomach. "Oh- don't forget that you owe me, Mina."

When she made it back to her seat, Wilbur and Tommy were just finishing their speech. Tubbo surveyed her as she sat back down, noticing her now jumpy behaviour. "Where'd you go? You were gone for quite a while."

“Don’t worry about it, just had some business to deal with.”

Suddenly, somebody cleared their throat, the sound echoed all throughout the centre. A tall man with short brown hair, ram horns, and a tailored black suit stood tall at the microphone. “I officially announce that I, Jschlatt, am running for president of L’Manberg!” _Jschlatt? Why is that name so familiar?_

Wilbur intercepted Schlatt before he could say anything else, “I’m sorry Schlatt but the ballots have been closed for a while. You can’t run.”

Schlatt and Wilbur argued on stage for the next few minutes before Wilbur bent and finally agreed to allow Schlatt to run, the man smirked with his victory. “Voting opens today and will go till Sunday, everybody make sure to cast your votes for your preferred candidates!” 

The audience disassembled, leaving few in the centre. Mina remained off to the side, observing those who stayed behind. Tommy, Wilbur, Quackity, and Schlatt were nowhere in sight, Fundy and Tubbo were searching for them.

“Mina, do you know where Wilbur and Tommy went?” Tubbo asked, Mina shook her head.

“Quackity and Schlatt are gone, too.”

"What do you think that means?" Fundy questioned, looking between the two.

Mina shrugged, "It's probably just politics, no need to worry kid."

Later that night Mina watched as the sun set, sighing lightly as she supported herself on the window sill. That name ran through her head with no destination in sight, "Jschlatt, why is that so familiar?" She ran a hand through her hair, gripping at her scalp in frustration. "Why don't you remember?"

Then she turned around, eyes set on the bookshelf containing every book in her possession. A row of leather covered books answered her question. Without a second thought, she grabbed five of them and dropped them onto the table.

Book number one wasn't what was needed, two, three, and four all followed the same pattern. Just travel notes. Then she opened up the final book and skimmed through it, stopping once a word caught her attention.

_"September 12, 3028,_

_The government that overtook Allumer has abruptly become a totalitarian system. Many citizens are attempting escape, many of which have young children._

_The president is old and frail, vice president Jschlatt contains most of the power as he has the most influence over a broad audience. I don't know what to do. A revolt may occur from this, joining them would be a mistake as I do not plan on residing here._

_Still, something about Jschlatt bothers me, maybe I should make an effort to remember him._

_This is it for now."_

"He was the vice president of Allumer?" Mina shut the book and pushed it towards the others, "That makes a lot of sense now." And now her mind was rushing, the fate of L'Manberg now rests on this sole election. Depending on the outcome, many lives could be at stake.

This wasn't her place to act, she couldn't step forward to force him out, she held no power in L'Manberg, she could do nothing.

Wilbur would win, right? There's no way he could lose. That's right, nobody will even consider the other candidates. Wilbur and Tommy wouldn't lose and that was final.

At least she hoped.

\---

Wilbur ushered Quackity into the backroom of his house, Tommy following close behind. He must get Quackity on his side, that would be a guaranteed victory.

"So Wilbur, what did you want to discuss with me?" Quackity crossed his arms over his chest as he hummed out his question.

"Well Quackity, I'm glad you asked," Wilbur started, "I have a proposal."

Quackity's eyebrow peeked up, "Carry on."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do consider leaving kudos or even a comment if you enjoyed! I appreciate even the slightest bit of support as it motivates me to keep going!


	6. The Election

The weekend passed with a blink of an eye and the day had arrived. The ballots were counted twice over, false votes eliminated and subtracted from the final count. Wilbur hands were shaking as he held the small notebook that contained the future of his nation. “Mina, what do you think will happen today?”

Mina patted him on the shoulder, slowly shaking her head. “I don’t know, Wil.”

“Wilbur, it’s time.” Tommy knocked on the door as he opened it, beckoning Wilbur out from his office. 

Mina followed close behind them both, keeping her hand on her sword handle to scare anyone who may approach. She may not care about politics but her brothers always came first.

An audience waited for them below the podium, speaking only in low whispers. The three presidential parties waited patiently on the stage, separated into their pairs and singles. What caught her eye was George standing beside Quackity. _So he did show up_.

Wilbur approached the microphone and held up the book for the people to see, “In my hand is the results of the election,” silence took over the crowd, “I would like to admit that during the count, there were a handful of falsified votes that have since been removed from the results.” 

“How do we know that you yourself didn’t forge the results, Wilbur?” Quackity challenged only to be shut down by Mina’s tough glare. 

“If you are desperate enough to know, Quackity, the party who contained the most forged votes was Manifold3030 with exactly 48 fake ballots.” Niki’s gaze shot to Jack who coughed off to the side while rubbing the back of his neck.

“Moving on, I believe it is time to announce the results.” Wilbur cleared his throat as he turned to the correct page, “In fourth place, with 9% of popular votes, is Manifold3030, in third place with a total of 16% of the votes is Schlatt3030...” Mina zoned out to the sound of Wilbur’s voice, vision focused on some object far off. 

“-On the same day that Schlatt3030 was announced was the same time when him and Quackity3030 made a deal,” A lump formed in Wilbur’s throat as he forced his next words out, “Their deal was that Quackity3030, no matter what, would pool their votes with Schlatt3030, bringing their coalition government to 46%, making Jschlatt and Quackity the new leaders of L’Manberg.” A mixture of cheers and gasps sounded from the crowd, “Citizens, give it up for your new president, Jschlatt.” Wilbur rose his shaky hands and clapped.

Mina’s eyes widened as she realized, Schlatt won. The same Schlatt who brought another small village to the ground just a few years prior was the same Schlatt who now ran their small familiar nation.

Tommy stood still, voicing out his distaste in the unfamiliar to him policy. Schlatt glanced over in his direction, “Tommy, get off my podium.” Wilbur called Tommy, forcing him down the stairs.

“We’re citizens now, Tommy, come sit down.”

Mina sat down next to Wilbur, shooting concerned glances his way. Schlatt cleared his throat and fixed his tie, "Well, that was pretty easy." Members of the crowd cheered and laughed, showing joy in comparison to Wilbur and Tommy. “You know what I said the day I came to this nation? I looked each citizen of L’Manberg in the eyes and said..this place will be very different tomorrow. So, let’s make it happen-” Quackity yelled out a confident ‘yes!’, “My first decree, as the president of L’Manberg-- the Emperor of this great country, is to REVOKE the citizenship of Wilbur Soot and Tommy Innit!” 

Gasps could be heard all around, Niki screamed out an emotional “No!”, Mina jumped up out of her seat with both Wilbur and Tommy. “Get ‘em outta here! You’re no longer welcome!” 

“Run.” Mina growled at her brothers as she unsheathed her sword, pointing it at Punz. “To get to them, you’ll have to get through me.” Punz sneered at her and loaded his crossbow.

“I can kick your ass later, now get out of my way before I put an arrow through your chest.” She remained in her spot, firmly gripping her shield and sword. “Mina, get out of my fucking way.” He exhaled deeply out of his nose and shoved her down to the ground, “When I said move I meant it, don’t get in my way again.”

“I did what I had to do Punz, good luck catching up to them.” His head lifted in their directly, scowling when he briefly seen invisibility bubbles rushing towards the gate. Punz shot her a final glare as he shot in direction of her brothers, an arrow hit somebody, whom exactly she was unsure. “Lost your touch, hm?” He threw down the crossbow and kicked her side hard. 

“Watch what you say from now on, Mina, there’s no one to protect you now.” 

Schlatt continued his speech, drowning out the chaos, “Until further notice, Wilbur Soot and Tommy Innit are merely a memory of L’Manberg, a relic of the past, a reminder of the darkest era this country has ever seen and I guarantee you all, dear citizens, tonight, that changes,” Cheers died down, leaving behind deafening silence, “we are entering a new period of L’Manberg, a period of prosperity, of strength, of unity..” 

Punz backed away from Mina, allowing her to get up and lean against the wall. Schlatt’s eyes ran over the crowd as he brought himself closer to the mic, “Where’s Tubbo?” Tubbo answered with a raised hand, “Get up here man, come here.” Quackity called out, “Immediately!” 

Tubbo walked unsteadily up the stairs, standing beside Schlatt and George, “You’re the Secretary of State, effective immediately.” 

“W-what? Me? Secretary of-of State?” 

“Of course, I’m not going to fire you, you’re Tubbo!” The president proclaimed, grabbing him by the shoulders and bringing him to centre stage, showing him off to the citizens. 

“Don’t do it, Tubbo, don’t accept the offer.” Mina ran her teeth over her bottom lip as the stingy pain on her side continued. “Please, Tubbo.”

Her prayers went unheard, she noticed, when Tubbo nodded, smiling faintly as Schlatt brought him up to the microphone. “Now Tubbo, as my right hand man I need you to do something for me...”

“What can I do for you, Mr. President?” 

“I need you to find Tommy and I need you to show him the _“door”,_ Ibelieve that he is very close, it almost feels like he’s watching..” Schlatt pointed at the top of a tall building, grinning wickedly as Tommy and Wilbur both threw themselves backwards away from sight, “-from atop a building.” 

Tubbo drew out his sword and took a few hesitant steps, “Tommy, please come down here.” 

Mina watched as Tommy peered down from the rooftop, eyes glossed over with tears as he begged his best friend to not do anything he may regret. “Tommy, please just come to the podium man.”

“No Tubbo, I-I won’t!” 

Mina slipped away, running back to her place. 

Her ribs were beginning to bruise as the pain dulled slightly, this injury is what her father would call a minor inconvenience. So she pulled her shirt back down and swung open one of her chests, digging through it before the item she needed appeared.

The compass illuminated with a dark purple glow, the letter M engraved on the back with a piece of paper hanging from a string reading _“Mina’s Compass, only use if desperate.”_

After tucking it into her pocket, she began sweeping her journals from the bookshelf into her enderchest, only leaving general history and nonfiction books for the public eye. 

She gave herself a brief moment to take a breathe and analyze her current situation. “Staying here would only hurt me but leaving would hurt those who trust me.” Her hands ran down her face as she sighed loudly. “You worked so hard to build them up, why leave that all behind?”

She lifted her head, looking out the window, noticing some familiar figures digging at the walls of L’Manberg. With a closer look, she could see Fundy. Her brother’s beloved child, destroying the walls that they built to protect him. Her own nephew. 

Eret stared from the ground, jaw clenched. “Eret, what the hell are they doing?” Mina ran up to the monarch, voice wavering as she spoke.

“Schlatt ordered the walls around L’Manberg to be torn down immediately.” He stated, arms crossed over his chest. A feeling of sadness came over them both while watching the stone walls be torn down, the walls that they helped build. “Mina, come with me.” Eret spoke up, dismissing that blue feeling.

After taking one final look at the walls, she followed Eret out of L’Manberg and deep into the woods. “Where are we going?”

“I know the general direction Wilbur and Tommy went, I figured that you were going to search for them.” Mina's silence dragged on till Eret came to a halt, turning to her. "This is all I could see."

Mina slowly surveyed the forest, noticing footprints left in the dirt path. "How could you see out here? The trees block everything, it's impossible to see even from outside.."

Eret smiled and shook his head, "It's nothing you need to be concerned about," He said softly, "good luck, Mina."

He maneuvered his way out, walking along the trees back the way they came. That was another thing Mina had to think about, Eret's supposed see through vision.

Mina moved throughout the forest, watching for hints of human life. Footprints, blood, anything. Then she came to an opening and noticed fresh blood on a tree trunk, "Wilbur? Tommy?" She called out, listening to the echo of her voice.

She continued further, spotting small smears of blood on her journey. A red hue hung from the sky, signifying the time it had taken her to walk to this point. "Wilbur!" She called once more.

Up ahead, Wilbur and Tommy tearfully watched on as the citizens of their former nation tore down the very walls they built. "My own son, tearing down the walls I built to keep him safe."

A chill ran up Tommy's spine as the wind carried what he believed to be a scream in their direction, “Wilbur, did you hear that?” 

The man stared up at his brother, confusion came over his face. “Hear what?”

“WILBUR!” 

They definitely heard that.

Tommy drew his sword, expecting somebody from L’Manberg to be chasing after them. “Who’s there? Reveal yourself now or else we’ll come in ourselves!” He bravely yelled, entering a fighting stance.

Wilbur squinted at the tree line, recognizing the tall figure that broke through. “Mina?” He asked weakly, “Mina!” He gasped when she got closer, running her way.

“Oh thank gods, he only hit your arm,” Mina sighed out in relief, inspecting his wound the best she possibly could. "I can take a better look if we get away from this area."

He withdrew his arm, shaking it off like it was nothing to be concerned about, "What about you? I noticed that you held them off, I'm sure they didn't take too well to that." Wilbur reached forward, placing his hand gently on her shoulder.

"I can handle Punz just fine, you don't have to worry about me."

Tommy rolled his eyes and clicked his tongue, tapping his foot on the grass floor impatiently. "This is fun and all but can we go somewhere else? Somebody could find us any minute now and that is not a battle I am not capable of fighting right about now." The youngest finished off with a huff and a glare, bringing a smile onto his siblings faces.

"He's right, we should go elsewhere before we get spotted," Wilbur nodded and faced the forest, "we have no choice but to go through there, I'm sure we will run into a good shelter." Mina remained still for a second, as if considering her next move, both boys turned around upon noticing the lack of her presence. "Aren't you coming with us?"

"Right, sorry, I just- I just got lost in thought." She jogged to catch up, following close behind as to not lose them.

As the sky grew dark and groans of monsters surrounded them, their anxiety rose as realization of their surrounds grew. Up ahead on the muddy trail was a narrow opening inside of a mountain. "Do you think someone is living in there?" Tommy whispered quietly, Mina drew her sword and ordered them to stay back.

The small room contained nothing but a small chest and a bed, appearing to have been abandoned for years. She lit a lantern and placed it down on the small table in the corner waving her hand outside for Wilbur and Tommy to know it was safe.

"This place looks about as dusty as you two." Tommy commented, sweeping his finger over the surface of the table.

Mina shot a glare at her younger brother, "If you want to be like that, go sleep outside."

"Now now, we don't have the time to argue. We should focus on making this our new home," Wilbur immediately stepped between the two, ceasing the fight, "So, our first activity should be naming our new great nation, yes?"

Mina shrugged her shoulders, eyes wandering away from Wilbur. "I'm going back, Wil."

"What do you mean?"

"How will you get intel if you don't have an agent?"

After a second of thought, Wilbur agreed. "Okay, so you shall return to L'Manberg and report back here when necessary."

Mina nodded and pulled out a bundle of bandages and ointment, handing it to Tommy. "I'll be leaving now, make sure you patch up Wilbur, couldn't have it getting infected."

"You're leaving now? It's pitch black! You'll be lucky to even make it through the forest!" Tommy held her back by the shoulder, his eyebrows perked up in worry.

With a reassuring smile, she lit up a lantern, "The forest isn't that bad, Tommy, I'll be fine."

Wilbur removed Tommy's hand from Mina's shoulder, nodding at her to leave. "Be careful, alright? Report back here in 3 days minimum, even if you don't have any information."

"I will, see you then."

Travelling through the forest proved to be harder than she expected. Each tree slowly began looking identical to the other, the path she believed she knew no longer existed. Panic rose in her chest, her pounding heart screaming _"you're lost!"_

And then, familiar purple particles appeared and disappeared as a creature zipped between places. Mina brought up her blade in preparation, expecting a large vicious monster to appear in front of her.

Her heart dropped into her stomach as she felt a presence behind her. In one swift motion, she spun around and brought her blade up to it’s neck.

"W-wait, please don't kill me! I-I'm not dangerous!" She cautiously lowered her blade from the creatures neck, staring at him in curiosity.

"Y-you're a hybrid, an enderman hybrid.." She awed, still intimidated by his tall lanky frame.

"Yeah, yeah that's right! I-I heard you from over there-" he gestured towards the right of them, "-and I, I figured you were lost s-so I wanted to offer help.."

Conversation with the enderman fell short once he figured out where she needed to go, "Hold onto my arm, okay?" Mina hesitantly brought up her hand and firmly gripped onto hid arm. She couldn't describe the feeling of teleportation, except that it made her head hurt when she landed just a few steps away from the Prime Path. "I'm sorry, this is as close as I can bring you without being spotted, I-I'm glad I could help, goodbye."

Mina blinked as he rushed out his words, and with that blink, the enderboy was gone. "Thank..you?"

Then her walk back to L'Manberg was nothing, her mind overwhelmed with the anomaly she just experienced.

Niki was waiting by the door when Mina arrived, an anxious look crossed her features. "Mina, where were you? It's been almost ten hours since someone last saw you!" She jumped up from the floor and rapidly approached Mina, eyes glossed over with worry.

"Don't worry about me, Niki, just went to clear my head." She opened her door and walked in, brushing Niki off.

Niki followed her inside, an angry energy flowing off from her. "For ten hours?"

"Yes, for ten hours," Mina replied, placing the kettle on top of the gas stove, "why you care anyways? I'm not even an actual citizen."

"Why are so many of your books missing?" Niki ignored Mina's question as she approached the bookshelf that was once filled with books now missing two rows.

"Did some cleaning."

Doubt crossed the blonde's face the more she surveyed the shelf, "I didn't think you were the type to throw out literature."

Mina poured the tea into a cup and sat it down on the table, "Take a seat if you're staying, I wouldn't want you getting tired." The two women met each other's gaze, tension rose between them both with each passing second.

Niki brought her attention back to the bookshelf and reached for one of the thick spines. Mina immediately recognized the book she grabbed, her first steal from the library, the potions book. Nothing of concern.

"Potions, you know how to brew?"

Mina nodded, "I do, all of my brothers do as well. Our father believes it is a necessary skill for everybody," she glanced up through her eyelashes as Niki approached the table, book in hand. "Why are you asking so many questions? Is this your way of interrogating me?"

“N-No, I just-”

“If I were you, Niki, I would just drop the questions you have before this possibly escalates,” Mina leaned forward, glaring subtly, “now, I suggest you change the topic.”

Niki swallowed harshly at the realization of her friend’s genuine threat, hands growing clammy as she studied the blank expression on her face. “Why did you stay?”

The wooden chair creaked under her as she shifted her body weight to the back, “That’s a good question,” Mina drummed her fingers against the table surface, eyes glossing over with an unidentifiable emotion, “I stayed for Wilbur and Tommy.” She answered honestly, voice low.

“Are you going to leave then?” Niki asked.

“Not for now.”


	7. President's Guard

_Mina hurried down the stairs with her brothers, excited for the trip they and their father would take today. Trips were rare, saved for important situations like a lack of supplies or one of them requiring additional medical attention._

_But today was the day where their father agreed to let all of them go, not just Techno or Tommy, his reasoning being how mature they've all become. Mature enough to see what it was like in the big cities._

_"Alright, is everybody ready?" Phil did a headcount and smiled at his four children._

_"Yes!" They each cheered out._

_Phil tapped his own shoulder while looking at Mina and she noticed the lack of wings on his own back. "You need to hide them, Mina."_

_Techno nudged her, reaffirming what their father was saying. Mina nodded and hid the black feathered wings, cringing at the feeling which she was unaccustomed to._

_With that, Phil did another headcount as he had them leave one by one. Once they reached the path, Phil led the way while holding Tommy's hand and Wilbur walked directly by his side. Techno and Mina hung back just by a bit._

_"Do you know why Phil wants you to hide them?" Techno spoke suddenly, interrupting the still air. Mina shook her head no and glanced up at him, "There are terrible people in these towns, Mina, terrible people who do things like cut off wings of people like you.”_

Rapid knocking on the door woke Mina up from her slumber with a jolt, “Coming!” She called out.

Tubbo stood in front of the door dressed up in a fitted black suit, expressionless. “You have been summoned by the President,” He said plainly, turning on his heel and leaving without another word.

The air in L’Manberg felt stiff, all people in sight working diligently. Mina’s boots clicked against the stone path as she walked towards Schlatt’s current base of operations. A small building that must’ve been built when she was away with her brothers.

She wrapped her knuckles on the hard oak door, letting herself. Schlatt and Quackity were seated close to a big desk, stacked high with a number of legal documents and bottles of alcohol. “Oh great, you’re here! Hana..no, wait, Nana? Your name’s Nana, right?”

She took a frustrated deep breath, “It’s Mina.”

“Right right, same thing- So Mina, I need a lil somethin’ from you,” she crossed her arms under her chest in preparation to decline, expecting something directed towards her physical appearance, “I need a guard and none of the other assholes here are that tough lookin’, this is effective immediately.”

“And if I decline?”

Quackity reached for the diamond axe by his side and stood, putting his weight against the handle. “Then you pay the price for refusing orders.”

Mina scoffed at his weak threat and brought out her sword, glaring at the man. “Try me if you’re so sure you’ll win.”

“Now this is what I mean, Quackity! Look at her, didn’t I tell you how fuckin' tough she is?”

The vice president lowered his weapon and reluctantly returned to the chair, lazily slouching like an upset teenager. 

“I’ll do it, under the conditions that I get to go whenever I please and I choose when I am and am not by your side.”

“What makes you think you get to make those calls?" Quackity's head was tilted to the side, his eyes narrowed into a challenging glare, "You should be grateful he's willing to even consider you for this job when you have connections to Wilbur and Tommy."

She squeezed the wooden handle of her sword and grit her teeth, releasing a low sigh. "Do we have a deal, President Schlatt?" Schlatt swirled the whiskey around before shooting it down, slamming the glass down onto the table.

"I believe we do."

See, her job was far easier than what she expected. All she was required to do was follow Schlatt around and keep a watchful eye. And, no one really took their chances anyways, it was almost like she was unnecessary.

Quackity made his negative opinion of her obvious in numerous ways. Glares shot behind Schlatt's back, tripping attempts, odd comments. He kept his image up the second Schlatt turned around, maintaining his positive reputation for the time being.

However, Mina didn't take any of his foul actions to heart, having dealt with enough insults since young.

Over the course of three days, Mina had accompanied Schlatt along numerous strolls around growing L'Manberg, now known as Manberg, and now knew vital information to funnel back to Wilbur.

"Mr. President," Mina spoke in a low, formal tone. "I'm going out of Manberg to run some errands, I will be back by tomorrow morning."

"Alright, don't be gone for long. Wouldn't want to miss anything important now, would you?"

Mina nodded firmly, "I won't sir, I promise."

This time, the path was much easier to follow but to make sure it remained easier, she dropped small pieces of red ribbon at small intervals, knowing better than previously.

The narrow opening had now been covered by a tall and thin rock, clearly their way of making it harder to find. She pushed it over and replaced it, noticing another opening made in the stone wall, a staircase leading downwards.

"Wilbur? Tommy?" She called out quietly, hand grasping her sword handle just in case.

The steep staircase led to a gigantic ravine, lanterns hung from the ceiling and multiple bridges linked ledges together. Her eyes grew wide in awe, she had only been gone for three days, how'd they manage all of this?

"Wilbur- Techno?" Mina grew breathless at the sight of the pink haired man, clad in a worn white shirt covered in dirt and simple black pants, he was wiping sweat off his forehead. "Techno, I didn't think I would see you here- what are you doing?"

"Be more specific, what am I doin’ currently or what am I doin’ here?" He glanced up briefly while he scrubbed off any excess dirt on his hands.

"Answers to both would be appreciated."

“Just finished plantin’ a bunch of potatoes and I’m here because I found Tommy wanderin’ around and was convinced to join ‘em.”

“Oh.”

“Well what are you doin’ here?”

“I have to report back to Wil, it’s been three days since this all started, I promised him that I would participate in..whatever he’s doing.”

Speaking of Wilbur, he turned the corner, sporting a long light brown trench coat, a yellow sweater, and black pants. A completely different outfit to what he’d been wearing previously. Even his arm was patched up. “Mina! You’re finally back, I was worried that you weren’t going to return.”

“You look different,” Mina commented.

“I changed my outfit,” He chuckled lowly, “I didn’t even realize how long I wore that thing without washing it, it’s filthy.” 

Tommy strolled through the nether portal before throwing down his armour and sword, then picking up a potato from a basket near him. “Oh, why the fuck are you here?” He yelled with his mouth full. The three older siblings sighed, all turning away from their younger brother. “What?”

-

Tommy grumbled loudly as he threw down the baked potatoes onto the table at each of his siblings, finally getting to sit down after “slaving away” for such a long time.

“-You’re Schlatt’s guard?” Wilbur gasped.

Mina nodded and threw a notebook onto the table, “He’s planning a festival of some kind, he hasn’t specified anything to me or Quackity so I’m keeping my ears open.”

“A festival?” Tommy questioned, reaching for the leather notebook.

“To unite those who may oppose his victory.”

“Interesting, why wouldn’t Tubbo say anything?” Wilbur sighed, running a gloved hand through his hair. He tapped his fingers against the wooden surface, mind racing with ideas, “Keep up your façade, Mina, you’re a vital piece in our plan.”

“Right,” She agreed, “I’ll have to be careful though, if any of you come to Manberg, it’s best to act like you haven’t seen me. He might suspect if he catches me close to you guys.”

Techno cleared his throat, drawing attention to himself. “Personally I believe Mina shouldn’t come back as frequently, she’ll get found out that way.”

The conversation was cut short by a quiet gasp coming from the tunnel. Suit clad Tubbo fiddled with his thumbs upon meeting Mina’s gaze. “Mina, I-I didn’t expect to see you here...”

Mina got up and grabbed his arm, she dragged him over to the table and forced him into a chair. “Don’t speak of this to anyone that isn’t here, okay? Or we’ll _both_ be shot.” Tubbo began shaking slightly and he swallowed a growing lump in his throat.

“Relax! You’re scaring him,” Tommy hissed, pulling his sister away from his friend, “He’s a spy for us anyways, you didn’t have to be a bitch.” Tommy then redirected his attention to his nervous friend, “Are you alright, Tubbo?”

“Mina.” Techno said gently, nodding away to the opposite end of the ravine. While Tommy and the others stayed behind, Mina followed Techno out of the ravine towards a small pond.

“What is this?” 

Techno simply smiled, pulling a lever, revealing a narrow staircase. He made a welcoming gesture, showing her down before closing off the entrance. Her jaw dropped open in shock at the work he’d managed in just under three days, “Techno- Techno, this is fucking insane!”

“Thanks,” 

When they reached the bottom, she looked around with an open mouth. “How did you manage this?”

“Want me to be honest?”

“That would be preferred.”

“I haven’t slept.”

“Techno!” She slapped his shoulder, glaring intensely into his red eyes, “Why would you do that to yourself?”

He shrugged and turned his back to her, opening up one of the many chests. “I needed to get stuff done, pullin’ a couple of all nighters isn’t somethin’ I can’t handle.”

“You can’t do that, Techno, it’s unhealthy.”

He glanced back, acknowledging that she spoke without responding himself. Techno placed a round shiny metal item in her hand, a compass. “This will always lead back to me, Mina, don’t lose it.” 

She unwrapped her hand from it, observing it. The item was barely any different from her own compass, excluding the engraved sword and shield on the back. “Why are you giving me this?”

“For the future.”

He walked back towards the stairs, moving up them quickly. “Hey- Hey, slow down!” The piglin hybrids teasing laugh echoed between the rocks, hitting her ears as she ran up behind him. “You’re such an ass!”

“It’s not my fault, you’re just slow,” He grinned.

“Yeah, sure.” 

On the walk back, she remembered the object in her pocket and realized that no one was better to have it. “Techno, I have something for you.”

He stopped walking, “What is it?”

Mina fished out the item and placed it into his palm, “This will always lead back to me, Techno, don’t lose it.” She smiled, watching as he studied the compass. 

Back in the ravine, they were stood by a wall, having a serious conversation from the looks of it. “What do you think they’re talking about?”

“I dunno, seems uninterestin’ if you ask me.”

“That’s fair,” Suddenly, a thought came over her, “What are they calling this place again?”

“Pogtopia.”

“...Seriously?”

“Yep.”

“I honestly don’t know what I expected from them,” Mina laughed weakly, ending with a sigh.

Techno hummed in agreement, a sudden yawn fell from his mouth. Mina nudged him, teasing with her gaze. He avoiding looking at her, knowing that she was bugging him.

In the corner of her eye, she could see Tubbo leaving through the same tunnel he came from. “How often does he come here?” Techno shrugged his shoulders, certainly unsure as well. 

"He's come two days in a row, he talks to Wilbur and Tommy and dips,” Techno pointed towards the tunnel, “Apparently that leads to Manberg, haven’t tested it out myself but it may be a better route for you.”

All of a sudden, the sound of running came through the tunnel and Tubbo popped up, “Mina, we have to go back! Schlatt is suspecting something now that we’re both gone!” He panted, voice high in panic.

“Leave, now!” Wilbur yelled at them both, before she reached the tunnel, he held her back. “Be careful, we’ll come find you the next time we’re in L’Manberg.” 

“Okay, please be careful,” Mina and Technoblade silently met each others gaze, “All of you.”

“We will, now be off before they organize a search.”

Mina followed Tubbo through the large tunnel, feeling an unfamiliar sense of anxiety. This was really happening. She was taking part in a rebellion all while being dishonest to herself, what good would come out it?  
Not a lot, and she was aware of that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please do consider showing support if you enjoy the story so far! I appreciate it as it keeps me motivated to continue!


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